Optimizing your fermentation and your space!

La Garde is a division of SML Stainless Steel Group which has been making anything and everything out of stainless steel since 1966. Indeed, we have a great expertise in custom design and fabrication in the fields of kitchens as well as foodservice, medical and laboratory equipment and also the furniture, appliances and transportation industries. Its history of excellence in design, fabrication, delivery and installation of stainless-steel products is unequalled. We can proudly add to our list of happy customers four of the best 50 restaurants in the world.

La Garde's rectangular shape fermenters are designed to maximize the contact ratio must-to-juice through a thinner cap to optimize fermentation, wherein lies the creation of flavor and the complexity of wines. With La Garde rectangular tanks, the contact surface could be increased by up to 50 per cent when compared to a cylinder with the same floor width. Our tanks are made from the finest 304 stainless-steel Grade 11.

La Garde tanks are designed, manufactured and tested through rigorous finite element analysis to ensure heavy duty performance and sismic resistance. The use of the latest graphic software allows us to bring you tanks perfectly suited to your space and equipment needs. La Garde rectangular tanks are used for regular fermentation as well as for racking barrels, aging, blending and bottling wines.

Our Fermentation Tanks

CUSTOM MADE

AT LA GARDE, WE BUILD YOU TANKS THE WAY YOU WISH THEM TO BE IN ORDER TO SATISFY YOUR NEEDS.

We produce all tanks “sur mesure”, from 300 gallons to 9000 gallons, meaning that they are tailor made to use every single inches of winery that you would like to occupy to produce your wine. We can adapt the height, the width and the depth of the tank to reach the exact volume of wine that you want to produce.

Our rectangular tanks could produce up to 40 per cent more volume of wine than a cylinder tank for the same wall width that you want to occupy. Actually, given the production volume that you will need, we could reduce your winery floor plan and therefore reduce your construction cost.

SHAPE

THE CUBIC AND RECTANGULAR SHAPES OF LA GARDE'S FERMENTERS OFFER MANY ADVANTAGES, SUCH AS:

Optimized Fermentation

La Garde's rectangular shape fermenters are designed to maximize the contact ratio must-to-juice through a thinner cap to optimize fermentation, wherein lies the creation of flavor and the complexity of wines. With La Garde rectangular tanks, the contact surface could be increased by up to 50 per cent when compared to a cylinder with the same floor width.

By increasing that contact surface for the same volume, you increase the efficiency of the fermentation process. Therefore, you get more color, more tannin and more flavors from your grapes with a cap of must that is thinner, much easier to punch down, facilitates the pump-overs and the cooling process. It also helps the winemakers to save on time and helps them to be as gentle and as minimal as possible with their interventions.

Optimized Space

The shape of La Garde fermenters also allows space optimization for wineries. On the same footprint, La Garde tanks could provide more than 40% volume than cylindrical tanks of the same width and height.

FINISH

THE INCREDIBLE FINISH OF LA GARDE'S FERMENTERS ENHANCES THEIR BEAUTIFUL AESTHETICS AND OFFERS MANY MAJOR ADVANTAGES:

As a matter of fact, every weld and surface inside and outside La Garde's high-end wine tanks are polished to obtain an unprecedented smooth finish thus preventing bacteria and other harmful substances from gaining a foothold. Sanitation becomes easier and faster and results in better wines, fewer losses and exceptional quality control.

Water Management & Environment Friendly

Our Tanks are environmentally responsible. A big advantage of working with La Garde’s tanks is the simplicity of cleaning them. The reason why they are so easy to clean is due to the hand-polish finish that we proudly apply to each of them. The Exterior walls is a number-four polished finish with polished welds, and the interior walls is a 2B polished finish with polished welds. Actually, the welds are so polished that it is seamless. Although the tanks have a rectangular shape, the inside is rounded so there is no sharp corner as you can see even in the cylinder tanks.

According to the winemakers, it takes less than 80% of the water and the time to clean them compare to the cylinders.

The other eco-friendly advantage is our cooling jacket system. The spacing in the jackets is larger than with any other tanks. It allows the glycol to flow within the jackets with less head loss and a more rapid flow. The heat exchange transfer is therefore more efficient and it requires less energy to cool the wine.

Aesthetics

Crafted out of a noble material, La Garde stainless steel wine tanks are heavy duty, functional and have been designed with an eye for beauty and attention to details. Their clean lines satisfy the exacting aesthetic and functional demands of the most prestigious wineries. La Garde wine tanks stand as a proud reflection and support of all the care and expertise that go into your wines.

Nice open top with a cooling jacket underneath the tank and another one around it.

La Garde - 75 Gal. barrel

Take a look at our new 75 Gallons Barrel.
Call us to get yours today!

Alpha Omega Winery - 6x 3600 gal. Fermentation tanks

Hybrid model with removable top. All insulated with one inch of urethane (equivalent of 12 inches of concrete).

Winery Parts Board La Garde

Beautiful Part Board from La Garde

Why you should get your La Garde tanks

La Garde explains the advantages of square tanks

Rodney Strong La Garde Fermentation Tanks

New Wine Fermentation Square Tanks

Pago del Vicario La Garde Tank

La Garde Fermentation square tank

Domaine Aubert La Garde Tank

La Garde Fermentation square tank

News Archive

La Garde FLASH NEWS!

19 March, 2019

Did you know that…

La Garde tanks can be cleaned without scrubbing?

Every weld and surface inside all La Garde’s wine tanks are polished to obtain an unprecedented smooth finish which prevents any residue from sticking. Our tanks are beautiful on the outside but their real beauty is within!

La Garde FLASH NEWS!

13 March, 2019

Did you know that…

La Garde wine tanks are environmentally friendly?

We use technologies and techniques to reduce our carbon footprint. Almost every residue from the sheet of stainless steel we use to build our tanks is re-used, because this material is 100% recyclable.

La Garde FLASH NEWS!

06 March, 2019

Did you know that…

La Garde Wine Tanks will optimize your floor space?

The square shape of La Garde wine tanks allows for space optimization. Because we fill the corners, which others don’t, square is definitely the key to a greater wine production. Also, our tanks can produce up to 25% more volume than a cylindrical tank of the same height and width.

La Garde FLASH NEWS!

27 February, 2019

Did you know that…

La Garde Tanks will help you minimize your environmental footprint?

Because of the seamless interior of our tanks, the requirement in water is greatly reduced. Some of our customers stated that they’ve reduced their water usage by almost 90%. That smooth finish, that characterizes our tanks, also allows a reduction of cleaning agents and electrical power during the cleaning process. Less Water + Less Time + Less Chemical = MORE SAVINGS AND A HAPPIER PLANET

La Garde FLASH NEWS!

20 February, 2019

Did you know that…?

La Garde Wine Tanks will help optimize fermentation

Because of their square shape, the contact surface between the grapes’ flesh & skin and the juice is greatly increased when comparing to cylindrical shaped tanks. The wider area allows the cap to spread out more which leads to a more consistent fermentation and potentially increases the quality of your wine.

La Garde has 2 new Reps to serve you better

31 August, 2018

La Garde is proud the announce the recent arrival of our two Buisiness development specialists:

Scott Pelletier: With more than 20 years of experience in the Wine business as well as working in the custom steel fabrication, Scott is well prepared to assist our current and new customer in achieving the full potential of their wineries. Scott is currently taking care of the Coastal California (Sonoma, Monterey, Paso Robles) as well as Washington and Oregon

Jason Pepper: Jason cumulates a extensive experience in the wine industry and is definitely gonna be a ressource for wineries and winemakers seeking to increase their production using their existing space or wanting to plan new installations. Jason is currently working in the Napa and Lodi regions.

La Garde wine tanks are designed for winemakers by winemakers, enologists and engineers. We combine technology with the cutting edge expertise of our team to deliver tanks and other products that are unique, versatile and highly efficient.

See how Rodney Strong Vineyards use La Garde tanks to surpass expectations and maintain quality.

La Garde wine tanks are designed for winemakers by winemakers, enologists and engineers. We combine technology with the cutting edge expertise of our team to deliver tanks and other products that are unique, versatile and highly efficient.

La Garde is proud to announce that we are building the new fermentation tanks for The Castello di Amorosa for the harvest 2017. These tanks will make a perfect fit with the Castello magnificent look. They will also be completely insulated.

New Tank Installation at Beaulieu Vineyards

01 February, 2017

After providing the new fermentation tanks for Provenance, La Garde will build the new high end fermentation tanks for the Winery Beaulieu Vineyards to be ready for harvest 2017. We will provide 22x3000 gallons tanks for the winery.

See picture, the tanks will be similar to this one.

Beaulieu Vineyards will produce their top wine in these tanks. They are also restoring all the tank room to install all their new tanks.

In 3:40 minutes, learn why La Garde fermentation rectangular tanks are such a high added value to your winery.

La Garde tanks & Pago Del Vicario Winery

08 August, 2016

Watch the testimony of Suzana Lopez, technical director and oenologist at Pago Del Vicario winery located in Castilla-La-Mancha, in Spain.Learn the La Garde experience and advantages of its stainless steel wine tanks.

Why Rodney Strong Vineyards are delighted by their new tanks

04 December, 2015

A remarkable testimony about La Garde fermentation ‪#‎tanks‬, featured in December edition of ‪#‎WBM‬ magazine.

Increase ‪production capacity by 28% and reduce water use by nearly 90 percent : learn the story of Rodney Strong Vineyards.
Want to know their secret : switch from round to ‪#‎squaretanks‬.

The new La Garde's hybrid cubic shaped tank for a better flexibility in your winery!

02 October, 2014

Hybrid Tanks

La Garde’s cubic shaped stainless steel hybrid fermenters have all the advantages of the cubic form and the 1 to 1 aspect ratio of the La Garde’s close and open top fermenters. More specifically, these hybrid fermenters give the opportunity to winemakers to add lots of flexibility to their winery by modifying the number of close and open top tanks they have.

FEATURES

Also used for bottling, storing and racking wine into barrels

Volumes range: 1,300 gallons (4,5 tons) or 49 hl

At least 25% more wine per tank as compare to similar foot print cylindrical tank

Rodney Strong's winery is progressing very well with La Garde's cubic wine tanks

08 July, 2014

The Rodney Strong Vineyard’s team is hard at work installing their 57 new La Garde wine tanks! By optimizing its winery with cubic wine tanks, the company will increase its production capacity by 40% this year. Also, the seamless finish of La Garde tanks will save them time and money by reducing maintenance cost.

RODNEY STRONG VINEYARDS - Healdsburg

DOMAINE PINNACLE

DARA DZHALDI PRODUCTION DIRECTOR AND R&D

"La Garde tanks are of such ergonomics that the rational management of the production space as well as the impact of the kinetic energy on the quality of the products in preparation become minor concerns."

EX NIHILO VINEYARDS

JEFF HARDER OWNER

Proud customer of La Garde, Ex Nihilo Vineyards is located in the Okanagan Valley, British Columbia.

CLOS LAMBERT

RAYMOND LAMBERT, WINEMAKER AND OWNER

"The appearance of the La Garde tanks gets your attention. Aesthetics seems to be a major preoccupation for their manufacturer. After using the tanks for a while, one realises that their practicality is just as developed. La Garde wine tanks are effectively made to facilitate the cellar master's work and enhance efficiency."

DOMAINE BEL-CHAS

MARIELLE BELAND AND LOUIS CHASSE, WINEMAKERS AND CO-OWNERS

Our La Garde tanks enable us to control any and all parameters necessary for the creation of quality products.

MASÛT VINEYARD AND WINERY

JAKE FETZER, THIRD GENERATION

La Garde premium square open-top fermenters save space, are easy to clean, and show off their unmatched craftsmanship. They are leading the way in wine tank innovation.

La Garde cubic and rectangular shaped tanks are designed to maximize the fermentation process. The square surface as opposed to round one in tanks of the same width, offers at least 25% more contact surface area ...

La Garde cubic and rectangular shaped tanks are designed to maximize the fermentation process. The square surface as opposed to round one in tanks of the same width, offers at least 25% more contact surface area ...

Cubic Close Top Fermenters

La Garde cubic and rectangular shaped tanks are designed to maximize the fermentation process. The square surface as opposed to round one in tanks of the same width, offers at least 25% more contact surface area between the cap of must and the juice.

A larger contact surface area results in a thinner cap of must. Therefore, it is much easier to punch down, to provide more efficient pumpovers and to facilitate the cooling during the early stages of fermentation. All this helps the winemakers to save time and to reduce intervention procedures.

FEATURES

Also used for bottling, storing and racking wine into barrels

Volumes range: from 130 to 8,000 gallons (0,5 to 27 tons) or 5 to 300 hl

Standard stackable volumes: 130, 260, 555 gallons (5, 10, 21 hl)

At least 25% more wine per tank as compare to similar foot print cylindrical tank

Cubic Open Top Fermenters

La Garde cubic and rectangular shaped tanks are designed to maximize the fermentation process. The square surface as opposed to round one in tanks of the same width, offers at least 25% more contact surface area between the cap of must and the juice.

More specifically, these open top fermenters provide a larger contact surface area resulting in a thinner cap of must. Therefore, it is much easier to punch down. All this helps the winemakers to be as gentle as possible with the more fragile grapes, those needing extra care, such as Pinot Noir.

FEATURES

Volumes range: 555, 870 and 1585 gallons (21, 33 and 60 hl)

At least 25% more wine per tank as compare to similar foot print cylindrical tank

La Garde's cubic shaped stainless steel hybrid fermenters have all the advantages of the cubic form and the 1 to 1 aspect ratio of the La Garde's close and open top fermenters. More specifically, these hybrid fermenters give the opportunity to winemakers to add lots of flexibility to their winery by modifying the number of close and open top tanks they have.

FEATURES

Also used for bottling, storing and racking wine into barrels

Volumes range: 1,300 gallons (4,5 tons) or 49 hl

At least 25% more wine per tank as compare to similar foot print cylindrical tank

La Garde's variable capacity tanks were designed and fabricated after countless demands from our clientele to create better variable capacity tanks than what was available on the market. They boast an array of innovative features to make their manipulation, draining and cleaning much easier for the winemakers.

FEATURES

Are also used for aging, bottling, storing and racking wine into barrels